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Cybersecurity/News
NSA & Partners Issue Cyber Information Sheet on Threat Detection
by Kristen Smith
Published on August 22, 2024
NSA & Partners Issue Cyber Information Sheet on Threat Detection

The National Security Agency has released a cybersecurity information sheet outlining the best practices for event logging and threat detection in cloud services, enterprise networks, mobile devices and operational technology networks.

The CSI was published in collaboration with other federal agencies, such as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and international partners, led by the Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre, NSA said.

“Best Practices for Event Logging and Threat Detection” is designed to help organizations’ IT and cyber personnel defend against threat actors that use living-off-the-land techniques.

“Implementing and maintaining an effective event logging solution improves the security and resilience of systems by enabling network visibility and quicker incident response,” NSA Cybersecurity Director Dave Luber said in a statement.

He noted that organizations must bolster their resilience against advanced attack strategies in today’s cyberthreat environment.

In the publication, the NSA details the important considerations when applying logging best practices, namely enterprise-approved logging policy, centralized log access and correlation, secure storage and log integrity, and detection strategy for relevant threats.

Public and private sector organizations are advised to review the guide and execute its recommended actions, which can help identify malicious activity, behavioral anomalies, and compromised networks, devices or accounts.

Artificial Intelligence/Executive Moves/News
Mike Horton Appointed Acting Chief AI Officer at Department of Transportation
by Miles Jamison
Published on August 22, 2024
Mike Horton Appointed Acting Chief AI Officer at Department of Transportation

Mike Horton has been chosen as the acting chief artificial intelligence officer at the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to a post the executive shared on LinkedIn.

As the acting CAIO, Horton is charged with supervising the department’s AI use and fostering AI innovation. His other responsibilities include ensuring compliance with federal guidelines and regulations through risk assessment of AI applications, establishing and updating processes for measuring, monitoring and evaluating AI applications’ performance and utilizing a specific program for AI risk management.

Horton has been with USDOT for over five years. He joined the department in 2019 as team lead of the Federal Aviation Administration Human Capital Data Analytics and Systems. He then became deputy chief data officer in 2023, overseeing all the non-geospatial divisions within the Office of the Chief Data Officer.

As an educator, Horton was an adjunct professor at George Mason University and Saint Joseph’s University’s Erivan K. Haub School of Business. He currently teaches part-time at Northeastern University.

The AI governance professional served as a senior analyst, researcher and data engineer for the Office of Financial Research of the Department of the Treasury. He was also an analyst, researcher, investigator and data scientist for the Employee Benefits Security Administration of the Department of Labor.

Government Technology/News
NSF to Host Workshop on Open-Source Software Ecosystem for Future Wireless R&D
by Jane Edwards
Published on August 22, 2024
NSF to Host Workshop on Open-Source Software Ecosystem for Future Wireless R&D

The National Science Foundation will hold a workshop on Sept. 25 to examine the open-source software—or OSS—ecosystem that supports future wireless and spectrum research and development and identify opportunities to advance collaboration between R&D institutions and OSS communities to promote open-source platforms needed to drive wireless innovation.

According to a Federal Register notice published Wednesday, the workshop will be held at the Networking and Information Technology Research and Development National Coordination Office in Washington, D.C.

The event will also explore the objectives and limitations facing the diverse communities that play a role in shaping the direction of key OSS projects.

According to NSF, workshops sessions will address the current state of the wireless OSS ecosystem, emerging security and resilience requirements, transparency and confidence in OSS supply chains, and perspectives of researchers and experimenters on leveraging OSS to back wireless and spectrum R&D efforts.

Registration for the event will close on Sept. 24.

News
Industry Participation Critical to 6G Rollout & Regulation, ITI Says
by Jerry Petersen
Published on August 22, 2024
Industry Participation Critical to 6G Rollout & Regulation, ITI Says

For the Information Technology Industry Council, government efforts to regulate 6G will have to involve industry because it is industry that will drive the transition to the next-generation communications technology, which is anticipated for release in 2030.

ITI expressed this recommendation in a press release issued Wednesday, which summarizes the global technology trade association’s responses to a request for comment from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration regarding the advancement of 6G.

The organization also highlighted the role industry will play in ensuring 6G cybersecurity, establishing 6G standards and driving 6G innovations, including those related to sustainability.

“By relying on industry expertise, the U.S. can proactively address evolving challenges, while maximizing 6G’s transformative potential in areas like sustainability and AI for network performance,” said Katie McAuliffe, ITI senior director for telecommunications policy.

“ITI and our members look forward to continuing to work with policymakers to advance 6G in the United States and globally,” McAuliffe added.

Cybersecurity/DHS/News
DHS Developing ‘Different’ Prototype Data Protection Method
by Jerry Petersen
Published on August 22, 2024
DHS Developing ‘Different’ Prototype Data Protection Method

The Department of Homeland Security‘s Science and Technology Directorate is prototyping a way to protect data that S&T Data Analytics Technology Center Director Alexandria Phounsavath describes as “a different way of thinking about security,” Federal News Network reported Wednesday.

Under the new method, the data that needs to be protected will feature components allowing owners to place access controls like expiration dates for self-deletion or billing elements that require payment depending on the user, Phounsavath explained on Federal Monthly Insights — Unleashing Data Insights to Drive Government Innovation.

The S&T official noted, however, that the effort, dubbed data autonomy, remains “an open ended problem” in that “to make this data autonomy concept realized, it’s going to require new products and services in the future, and a lot of thinking from all our partners in academia and industry, other government labs, to kind of solve this problem.”

“So I think it’s a very interesting space. It requires a lot of thought, but it’s really, really exciting,” Phounsavath added.

Contract Awards/DoD/News
DOD Hands Out 7 More Awards for Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program
by Miles Jamison
Published on August 22, 2024
DOD Hands Out 7 More Awards for Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program

The Department of Defense has chosen seven more awardees for the Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program, or DBIMP, bringing the total to 13 awards with a combined value of $23 million.

The DOD said Tuesday the third batch of DBIMP awards was revealed during the National Defense Industrial Association’s Emerging Technologies Conference held on Aug. 7 in Washington, D.C.

The total number of awardees for the program is now 13 with the recent addition of the following bioindustrial companies:

  • Battelle in Columbus, Ohio
  • Modular Genetics in Cambridge, Massachusetts
  • Genomatica in San Diego
  • Industrial Microbes in Alameda, California
  • ZymoChem in San Leandro, California
  • The Better Meat Co. in West Sacramento, California
  • Biosphere, in Oakland, California

The DBIMP awards are part of Executive Order 14081, or “Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe and Secure American Bioeconomy,” which aims to enhance the nation’s bioeconomic strengths and defense capabilities.

Selected companies will receive funding to create business and technical plans for building domestic bioindustrial manufacturing facilities. These projects are part of the Defense Industrial Base Consortium Other Transaction Agreement, a contract vehicle managed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy.

Chosen projects will receive follow-on awards worth up to $100 million, which will be used to construct their proposed facilities.

Four-time Wash100 Award winner Heidi Shyu, the under secretary of defense for research and engineering, said, “Expanding the Department of Defense’s biotechnology capabilities is key to maintaining the United States’ supply chain and military superiority.”

Carla Zeppieri, deputy assistant secretary of defense for industrial base resilience, also highlighted the need for more resilient supply chains to address emerging threats and bolster the nation’s security needs. She noted that the DIBC OTA “plays a pivotal role in DOD’s efforts to develop mission-critical materials domestically.”

Debut received the first award for the DBIMP in July 2024. The rest of the awards should be announced within the coming month.

Executive Moves/News
DTRA Names Robert Turk Its Chief Information Security Officer & Authorizing Official
by Jane Edwards
Published on August 22, 2024
DTRA Names Robert Turk Its Chief Information Security Officer & Authorizing Official

Robert Turk, a retired U.S. Army colonel, has taken on the role of chief information security officer and authorizing official at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

He announced his appointment in a LinkedIn post published Wednesday.

Prior to this position, Turk was deputy director and deputy chief information officer at DTRA’s Information Technology Directorate. In 2015, he joined the agency as head of the IT cybersecurity department.

Before moving to DTRA, he served as senior cybersecurity engineer at CACI International.

Turk’s 25 years of active duty in the Army included time serving as military assistant to the deputy assistant secretary of defense for research, Army inspector general, division chief for IT service support within U.S. Special Operations Command and division automation management officer for the 2nd Infantry Division.

Cybersecurity/News
NIST Soliciting Comments on Updated Digital Identity Guidance
by Kristen Smith
Published on August 22, 2024
NIST Soliciting Comments on Updated Digital Identity Guidance

The National Institute of Standards and Technology is seeking public comments on a draft version of its updated digital identity guidance.

The draft Digital Identity Guidelines Special Publication 800-63 Revision 4 aims to ensure security, privacy and accessibility during the identity-proofing process for people accessing government services, regardless of the means by which a person chooses to prove their identity, NIST said Wednesday.

NIST incorporated feedback gathered in 2023 from private industry, federal agencies, privacy and civil rights advocacy groups, and members of the public into the updated guidance which, according to Office of Management and Budget deputy director for management Jason Miller, will help federal agencies better defend against evolving threats while providing critical benefits and services to the American people.

“These improved guidelines are intended to help organizations of all kinds manage risk and prevent fraud while ensuring that digital services are lawfully accessible to all,” said NIST Director Laurie Locascio.

Comments on the latest guidance will be accepted until Oct. 7. NIST will hold a webinar on Wednesday to discuss the draft publication.

Acquisition & Procurement/DoD/News
DIU Taps 3 Contractors to Solve Electromagnetic Interference on Drone Communication
by Kristen Smith
Published on August 22, 2024
DIU Taps 3 Contractors to Solve Electromagnetic Interference on Drone Communication

The Defense Innovation Unit has selected contractors Auterion, ModalAI and Neros to prototype hardware and software solutions to electromagnetic interference, or EMI, on small unmanned aircraft systems’ communication.

The three companies’ prototype demonstration and testing will start two months after their contract awards, with completion expected after nine months, the DIU said Wednesday.

The Department of Defense’s innovation arm added that electromagnetic interference project drew proposals from 99 companies, with the awardees chosen through a competitive process.

According to the DIU, the three winning contractors are tasked to provide a resilient baseline solution enabling drone operators’ rapid response in electromagnetically contested environments.

The EMI initiative follows the NATO-Ukraine Defense Innovators Summit in Krakow, Poland, in June, which highlighted how electromagnetic interference impacts the battlefield. It supports the Blue UAS program that the DIU initiated in 2020 for rapid assessment of commercial drones for potential DOD use.

The program’s cleared list of drones includes the sUAS platforms of Blue Halo, Wingtra, Ascent AeroSystems, senseFly and Freefly Systems. The DIU’s Blue UAS cleared list updated May 2024 identified drone platforms from 14 companies.

Artificial Intelligence/News
Army Unveils 2 Initiatives Under 500-Day AI Implementation Plan
by Jane Edwards
Published on August 22, 2024
Army Unveils 2 Initiatives Under 500-Day AI Implementation Plan

The U.S. Army launched two initiatives under two hashtags, #BreakAI and #CounterAI, as part of its 500-day implementation plan for artificial intelligence, Breaking Defense reported Wednesday.

Young Bang, principal deputy assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology, said the Break AI initiative seeks to test algorithms through the government’s verification and validation and testing and evaluation processes to ensure that the AI tools are free of flaws and fully operable before they reach the warfighters.

“It’s really about as we move towards AGI [artificial general intelligence], how do we actually test something that we don’t know what the outcome or the behaviors are going to be?” stated Bang, a 2024 Wash100 awardee.

He cited the need for industry’s help to advance the implementation of the Break AI initiative, particularly with building tools to evaluate its AI technologies.

The Counter AI initiative, meanwhile, focuses on defending against adversaries’ use of AI tools.

Jennifer Swanson, deputy assistant secretary of the Army for data, engineering and software, said the Counter AI initiative intends to make “sure our platforms and our algorithms and our capabilities are secure from attack and from threat.”

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